2011 Volkswagen Passat - 2010 Paris Auto Show

No sedan for you—this new Passat looks like it's for Europe only.

While the all-new Passat bowed at Paris with great fanfare, it is not the same car that Volkswagen of America will build at its new Tennessee assembly plant to challenge the likes of the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry.

Which is a good thing. The most charitable thing to be said about the design of the new 2011 Volkswagen Passat on display here in Paris is that it doesn't rock the boat. It has clean lines and a discernible front horizontal grille that is meant to be the identifiable mark of the brand.

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The best part of the new 2011 VW Passat is its size. It is a commodious people-mover in both sedan and wagon forms. Its lines are handsome and straightforward and little else. It's not a sporty car by any means, but there's no reason that the VW Group, with its extensive holdings in other brands, couldn't come up with a more dynamic look.

And while this new Passat—which will provide the chassis for the next CC, which will be sold in the U.S.—won't be coming to the U.S., its back-to-basics shape may appeal to a broad swath of American car buyers. We like this new Passat, and we can't wait to see what the U.S version, the so-called NMS (New Midsize Sedan), will look like.